Shoar on witness list in Allied Veterans case

SANFORD — Several state and local leaders, including St. Johns County Sheriff David Shoar, are on the witness list for the Jacksonville attorney accused of being the mastermind behind a veterans’ charity that prosecutors say was actually a $300 million gambling operation.

The witness list filed by Kelly Mathis includes former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, former Florida Secretary of Agriculture Charles Bronson, Palm Beach state attorney Dave Aronberg, former Jacksonville City Council President Jack Webb and sheriffs Joey Dobson (Baker), Rick Beseler (Clay), Jeff Hardy (Putnam) and Shoar.

St. Johns Sheriff’s Office spokeman Chuck Mulligan said Shoar didn’t know he was on the list, and that Shoar barely knows Mathis and the other people facing criminal charges.

Jacksonville Sheriff John Rutherford is not on the list, nor is Nassau Sheriff Bill Leeper or his predecessor, Tommy Seagraves.

Other high-profile local names include Nelson Cuba, 48, president of the Jacksonville Fraternal Order of Police; union first vice president Robbie Freitas; and Jerry Bass, 62, of Jacksonville, who is the national commander of Allied Veterans of the World.

Allied Veterans operated dozens of gaming centers. Authorities said the St. Augustine-based nonprofit gave only 2 percent to charities.

Mathis’ attorney, Mitch Stone, said the officials were on the list because they are familiar with the law. He said they can provide evidence that Mathis didn’t break the law when he advised Allied Veterans that their actions were legal.

Dobson said he met with Mathis and Freitas about seven years ago because the men wanted to bring a gaming center to Baker. “I told them I was opposed to it but that they were welcome to speak to the county attorney and the county commission,” Dobson said Tuesday. “I never heard from them again.”

Dobson said he had no idea if Allied Veterans was breaking the law, and didn’t see how his testimony would help.

Cuba has been on leave without pay from the Sheriff’s Office since shortly after his arrest. An acting union president was named shortly afterward. Freitas was initially on unpaid leave but has since retired.

Jennifer Carroll was asked to resign as lieutenant governor the same day she was questioned by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement about her ties to Allied Veterans. Carroll, a former Clay County lawmaker, has not been charged with a crime and is not on Mathis’ witness list.

The list was filed on the same day that 57 defendants had their arraignment. They had earlier entered written not guilty pleas and weren’t in court.

Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester told defense lawyers that anyone who intended to file a motion to dismiss needs to do so within the next 30 days.

He also said the people who didn’t waive speedy trial would be the first to get trials.

“I don’t anticipate trying 30 or more people at once,” Lester said, while adding that he wasn’t sure how many people would be tried at a time.

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certainly is joking. Not many Snuffy Smith shuriffs' are called to the stand for their "expertise" on the law. The witness list is a ho hum bluster for the uninitiated, a laughable if not a desparate shot in the dark.

(1) Can you explain why you raided and arrested Allied Veterans personnel for operating gambling machines while your local American Legion located in downtown St. Augustine was also operating five gambling machines and they continue to do so?

(2) Are the gambling machines located in that American Legion open and available to the public?

(3) Do you know how much money the American Legion contributes to charity each year?

(4) Are there other veterans service organizations located in St Johns County that operate gambling machines without any interference from the law?

I seem to remember this same rant a few months ago about a completely different subject. I am a regular there and FYI Wombat the machines haven't been on for over a week or so to my knowledge. I am certain you will find another problem with them to rant about soon. Good luck